Compression axle-lubricator.



H. D. STELLE & W. E. BAXTER. COMPRESSION AXLE LUBRIGATOR.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 19, 1910 1,011,136, Patented Dec.5, 1911.

W I! v HERBERT D. S TELLE AND WILLIAM E. BAX'IER, OF LOS ANGELES,CALIFORNIA.

COMPRESSION AXLE-LUBRICATOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed November 19, 1910. Serial No. 593,246.

I Compression Axle-Lubricator, of which the following is aspecification.

An object of this invention 18 to provide a lubricating device by whichthe bearing between an axle and a wagon wheel or the like can belubricated in 'a superior manner andwithout leakage of the lubricant orpermeation of the wooden hub or axle by the lubricant. 4

A further object is to so construct the lubricator as to thereby fix thewooden hub to themetal box of the wheel and to hold the hub in fixedrelation to the metal parts connected therewith without danger of thehub becoming loose.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention in the form atpresent deemed most desirable.

Figure 1- is a perspective view of the newly invented lubricator asapplied in awagon wheel and-axle, a fragment only of the wheel beingshown. Parts are broken to expose interior construction. Fig. 2 is tingthe compression head. Fig. 5 is a dea plan section practically on linea2 w Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the cup detached. Fig. 4 isan elevation omittail, of the hub, box, cup and compression headdetached from each other; fragments only of the hub and box are shown.Fig. 6 is a section of another form in which the grease duct is boredthrough the nut.

The hollow wooden hub 1 is counterbored at its outer end and inside thecounter-bore near the main bore a thin practically cylindrical cleft 2is cut, thus forming around the outer end of the main bore of the 'hub ashort thin wooden band 3 and at the outerend of the hub a thickpractically cylindrical collar 4:.

The metal axle-box 5 is mounted in the usual way on an axle-spindle 6which'is threaded at its outr end to receive the mm 6 which holds theaxle-box on the spindle.

The combined oil-cup and hub-fastener comprises two coaxial cylinders 7,8.- The smaller one of said cylinders forms a sleeve slightly thickerthan and of'nearly the same radius as the cleft 2 and has a wedge-likeintermediate web 10 to fit upon the outer end of the collar i internallyscrew-threaded as at 11 to receive a screw-threaded compres' sion head12 which may be turned by a wrench, not shown, and screwed into the ness from the shoulder to the .tip so that when driven into the recess inthe hub it acts as a wedge to force the inner band 3 Patented Dec. 5,ram.

. tip 9. Said cylinders are connected by an 1 against the box and theouter collar 4:

against the collar band '14, which encircles the end of the hub.

In practice, the wood of the hub being perfectly seasoned and dry, thecup is driven into place by a hydraulic press or other means exerting apressure of three thousand pounds, more or less; and when thus drivenhome it is not only efiectually fixed in place by frictional contactwith the walls of the cleft, but it also fixes the wooden part of thehub positively to the box and also to the collar band, thus to preventpossibility of becoming loose and preventing seepageof oil around thebox into the hub.

\Vhen the nut 6 is screwedhome on the end of the axle to contact withthe axle-box a solid partition or closure between the chamber of the cupand the interior .of the box is thus formed and this is pierced by athin' duct to form a lubricant way 15 between the grease chamber in thecup and the interior of the box 5. y

In some instances, the lubricant way extends directly through thespindle from the outer end thereof to a point inward beyond thescrew-threaded portion as indicated at 15 in Fig. 2. In other instances,a hole 15- may be bored through the solid part of the nut from the outerto the inner face of the nut to a point adjacent the shoulder 16 ofthespindle, and the spindle at this point 'may be slightly chamfcred so asto allow a is unimpaired and a very fine hole, the bore of which may beas small as can loe conven iently bored will be sufficient to admit thelubricant to the box, thus to lubricate the axle.

By boring the hole through the solid part of the nut it is possible tolocate the hole at such part of the nut that when the nut is screwedhome the'hole will be at the bottom of the axle, thus insuring theapplication of the lubricant to the axle with a minimum amount oflubricant to the'cup.

In any instance the arrangement of the lubricant Way through the solidpart of the partition formed by the axle and the nut between the cup andthe box enables the lubricant to be applied to the spindle below the topthereof.

In practice when the wheel is in place and the'nut screwed home, ,acharge of semifiuid' lubricant, such as hard grease or equivalentthereof, is put inside the lubricant cup and the compression head isthen screwed in place to apply sufficient pressure to the lubricanttoforce a portion thereof into the box to efiect the required lubrication.Said head may be screwed in slightly from time to time as may berequired to force the lubricant into the space inside the box.

W'e claim The combination with a metal axle-box, a spindle in the boxand a nut on the end of the spindle to retain the box on the spin- .dle;of a hub mounted on the box and provided at one end with a thin hollowpractica-lly cylindrical band around the box and a thick hollowcylindrical collar outside said band, therebeing a narrow annular cleftbecontact with the outer and inner walls of the cleft; and ascrew-threaded compression head screwed into the threaded cylinder,-thus forming a closed chamber containing said nut; there being an oilway between the interior of the threaded cylinder and the interior ofthe box. v

In testimony whereof, We have hereunto set our hands at Los Angeles,California, this 11th day of November, 1910.

HERBERT D. STELLE. WILLIAM E. BAXTER.

Inpresence of JAMns R. T WNSEND, L. BELLE RICE.

